Albany, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/11/2014 -- A leisure boat is also known as pleasure craft or recreational boat. According to the Norwegian legislation, the leisure boats are defined as any floating device that is designed for and capable of moving in water with a maximum length of up to 24 meters, and is meant to be used for recreational or leisure activities. Generally it is a type of craft with (without) a cabin and plumbing and other amenities required for living on board. The very craft could be motorized or non-motorized depending upon the boat type. Nowadays, several types of pleasure crafts are available with a broad range of variants.

The leisure boats industry represents only a small fraction of the global leisure industry. Specifically, in terms of adult participation, production units, and increased revenues, the leisure boat industry performed on a noteworthy scale over the past 10 years. The leisure boat market on the global front was hit hard during the recessionary period as the income levels dropped and people avoided extravagant spend on leisure activities. The economic downturn influenced the growth rate of the leisure boat market, resulting in considerable decline in the revenues of virtually all segments. The United States and Europe are the principle regions for the leisure boat market, which collectively represent a significant share of the global level leisure boat trade statistics. Though these markets are on the verge of maturity, they still hold good growth potential.

This report offers a comprehensive analysis of the global leisure boat market with focus on regions like the US, the UK, Italy, China and India. Furthermore, the ongoing trends of boat replacement cycle and innovations are discussed in depth. In addition, factors like increasing participation in the boating activity, rising income and population of HNIs, ameliorating global economy, better employment scenario, ardent tourism industry and increasing urban population which are fueling the growth of leisure boat industry are explained. Despite the existence of various growth drivers, there are certain challenges such as environmental concerns and contention from other leisure activity sources which can potentially hinder the growth of the respective industry.